Name:Nortel Networks Kidz Online
Brief Description of the Site:
Nortel Networks developed and maintains Kidz Online. It offers technology skills training for teachers and students on a variety of subjects from building web pages, security and media awareness to digital audio and digital video. This is an interesting presentation of professional development through 12 technology units, video clips of topic related interviews (as part of "Teen Focused Interviews", and content areas with technology integrated. The core curriculum component includes standards-based lesson plans and the links within links are most applicable to the middle to high school range for classroom use. Nortel's Kidz Online credits federal funding and congressional support for its successful launch, constructed at Virginia's Center for Innovative Technology, in Herndon Virginia. Virginia, to help students and teachers develop skills to increase their knowledge of the rapidly changing world of technology.
How to use the site:
Start the Educators link with "Technology Skills Training", "Lessons That Integrate Technology", "After School Programs and Workshops", and "Learn How Others Are Using the Site". A visit to "Lessons That Integrate Technology" offers Microsoft's Class Server software as a free download for schools as a management tool in addition to a pull down menu for a choice of grade level and content area materials. After you chose grade level and subject matter, you can select the kind of technology sought for subject matter integration. This is a site offers options that can fill a full year of professional development and student training easily. Video clips accompany the 14 technology categories that include 3D animation, digital video, Power Point, and Web Creation. This site is not easy to navigate, but the complexity offers depth and variety.
Create a strand of interest and prepare clear-cut directives for students to follow in order to make best use of time spent on Kidz Online. Educators looking for innovation that is significant in its potential to have an impact on classroom instruction would do well to spend some time on the site. Students can play video interviews of celebrities and media personalities to gain some insights into how to conduct an interview.
Submitted by:
Robert Long
Ottawa,Ontario, Canada
